The application of various fluids to all or selected parts of the human body has been known literally for centuries. However, despite the long-standing and widespread practice of coating the human body with various fluids, there has never been a successful way of automatically coating the human body. Therefore, prior to the present invention, it has been necessary to apply fluids to the body manually.
Manual application of fluids to the human body results in numerous disadvantages. First, it is almost impossible to uniformly coat the human body with fluids using manual application techniques. This is true even in the case of fluids that are provided in aerosol or spray form because such fluids must be rubbed in after application. Second, the application of fluids to certain parts of the human body, for example, the back, require the availability of an assistant in order that proper manual application can be attempted.
The foregoing difficulties are particularly apparent in the case of artificial tanning processes. Artificial tanning has been known for more than 40 years, with artificial tanning products appearing on the U.S. market as early as 1959. The two key types of tanning processes are by colorants and bronzers.
Tanning by colorants is based on the color reaction which occurs between components of the skin and the colorant. The most commonly used chemical for artificial tanning is dihydroxyacetone (DHA). It is widely used in commercial artificial tanning products, and is recognized as safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). DHA reacts solely with the stratum corneum. It interacts with amines, peptides and free amino acids to generate a Maillard reaction. The resulting products are cyclic and linear polymers that have a yellow or brown color.
Two common bronzers are juglone and lawsone. Both are naphthoquinones. When applied to skin, lawsone produces an orange hue and juglone produces a greenish-brown tan. They are sometimes used in combination with DHA to modify the color or hue of the tan or to intensify the color.
Numerous forms of artificial tanning products are now on the market. They include:
lotions, PA1 creams, PA1 gels, PA1 oils, PA1 sprays. PA1 moisturizers, PA1 preservatives, PA1 antimicrobials, PA1 thickeners, PA1 solvents, PA1 emulsifiers, PA1 fragrances, PA1 surfactants, PA1 stabilizers, PA1 sunscreens, PA1 pH adjusters, PA1 anti-caking agents, PA1 ingredients to alter the color reaction. PA1 Most products designed for manual application require components such as thickeners and polymers, which often inhibit the efficacy of DHA. PA1 Current formulations typically take about 20 minutes to dry to the touch, and about 1 hour before not transferring from skin to textiles. PA1 Application of artificial tanning products is additionally complicated by the tendency of these formulations to stain materials containing amine molecules, including certain fabrics, certain types of carpet, and certain wall coverings and paint. PA1 self-tanning formulations, PA1 sunscreens, PA1 suntan lotions, PA1 tanning accelerators, PA1 sunburn treatments, PA1 insect repellants, PA1 skin toners, PA1 skin bleaches, PA1 skin lighteners, PA1 antimicrobial compositions, PA1 moisturizers, PA1 exfoliants, PA1 nutriments or vitamins, PA1 massage aides, PA1 muscle relaxants, PA1 skin treatment agents, PA1 burn treatment agents, PA1 decontamination agents, PA1 cosmetics, PA1 wrinkle treatments or removers. PA1 Uniform application minimizes or eliminates streaking, PA1 No assistant is required for applying the composition, PA1 The entire skin surface receives the same exposure to the composition, so the uniformity of the coating is greatly enhanced over manual application, PA1 The optimal formulation for atomization is very simple, and does not require the addition of components which may inhibit the efficacy of the applied material, PA1 The application time can be as quick as a few seconds, and complete drying can occur in just a few minutes, PA1 The containment system drastically reduces the unwanted environmental impact, PA1 Multiple applications can be used to better control the amount of material applied per unit area, and additional substances can be applied in separate applications. PA1 WO 94/12146 6/1994 PCT Int'l Appl. PA1 Akins, F. J. and Marlowe, E., "Non-Carcinogenicity of Dihydroxyacetone by Skin Painting," Journal of Environmental Pathology and Toxicology, 5: No. 5, pp. 349-351 (1984). PA1 Federal Register, "Color Additive Dihydroxyacetone" 38: No. 148, p. 21615, Aug. 2, 1973. PA1 Futterer, E., "Theory and Practice of Artificial Tanning: Literature and Patent Survey," Cosmetics and Perfumes, 88: No. 8, pp. 31-33 (1973). PA1 Johnson, J. A. and Fusaro, R. M., "Persistence of Skin Color and Fluorescence after Treatment with Dihydroxyacetone," Dermatology 188: pp. 247 (1994). PA1 Kurz, T., "Formulating Effective Self-Tanners with DHA," Cosmetics and Toiletries, 109: No. 11, starting p. 55 (1994). PA1 Levy, S. B., "Dihydroxyacetone-Containing Sunless or Self-tanning Lotions," Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 27: No.6, pp. 989-993 (1992). PA1 "Spray Application Processes," BINKS training brochure TD49-2R-4, August, 1995, BINKS Manufacturing Company, Franklin, Ill.
These products are mixtures of a chemically-active skin colorant or a bronzer with combinations of the following:
Users of these products often experience significant problems associated with the current methods for applying artificial tanning formations to skin. These problems include the following.
If not properly dried, the formulation will streak or form blotches with time. The net result is a very nonuniform tan, with light or dark streaks or blotches. PA0 Certain parts of the body will stain more intensely when the formulation is spread manually. This differential staining is due to enhanced absorption of certain skin tissue and the tendency of certain tissue to retain more formulation. The result is that as the formulation is being spread manually, certain tissue absorb or trap more formulation (e.g., the wrinkles in the elbows and knees and the dense tissue in the palms).
In spite of all of these problems, artificial tanning is becoming increasingly popular. It is apparent that a need exists for a superior application system which solves the foregoing problems.
There is also a need for a superior applications system for many other applications, including but not limited to:
There are specific and significant problems with the manual coating of each of these products. The artificial tanning application provides a good illustration of the types of problems normally encountered when manually coating these products. Artificial tanning is also one of the most demanding applications in that uniformity of the coating is critical to assure uniform tanning.